


seven teeny-tiny Christmas traditions Hank finds quite meaningful

by peachtipple



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Christmas, Established Relationship, Fluff and Smut, Hannor Week 2018, Kissing, M/M, Oral Fixation, Oral Sex, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-16 00:14:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16943385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachtipple/pseuds/peachtipple
Summary: It's Connor's first Christmas and he's going to extra lengths to make it special. Hank isn't so keen on the festivities- apart from the eggnog and good food- but he goes along with what his partner wants for his sake.Featuring Christmas shopping shenanigans, cliche tropes, ugly hand-knitted sweaters made with love, warm and soft hugs and the DPD's BYOB holiday party extravaganza.





	1. warmth

**Author's Note:**

> Work done as part of Hannor Week 2018 featuring the Winter prompts in different chapters within the same work.  
> (More information can be found on the event Tumblr @hannorweek.)
> 
> Title inspired from 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas' because it was and will always remain my favourite holiday movie.

"For the last time Connor, I don't do shit like that."  
  
Hank was locked in a staring contest with his android partner, a scowl of annoyance on his features in contrast to Connor's doe-like, brown eyes, a pout on his lips as he clutched the small 'Happy Holidays' postcard that the DPD had issued to all the people working in the precinct. Gavin had immediately chucked it in the trash whilst Hank immediately used his as a coaster for his full-to-the-brim cup of black coffee. Nines merely slipped it in his pocket, the ghost of a smile appearing on his face. Connor, on the other hand, had kept his clutched between his fingers for the rest of the day, including the car ride home, and by the time he was waving it in front of Hank, insisting they decorate the house and be 'festive', it had gotten slightly bent and weary. He even wanted to cook Christmas food such as pudding and little gingerbread man. Of course, Hank knew all about that because as soon as the android finished his work an hour before Hank, he spent it looking up recipes and exuberantly showing them all off to the Lieutenant.  
  
And here he was, two dozen stern 'nos' later, still pleading relentlessly. Heck, he didn't even beg like that in bed which, to be honest, he didn't need to do much of in the first place as Hank didn't have enough self-control to edge him- but that's beside the point. Actually, the older male was surprised that the android hadn't dropped down to his knees to try and bribe him by blowing him off as he did other times for when he wanted something or merely just his attention. He'd sit between his legs, cheek resting against his inner thigh, batting his eyelashes and smiling sweetly as he traced the outline of his cock in whatever trousers he was wearing until he goes stiff enough to heave him off the floor with one hand and carry him to their bedroom. So far all he had done was ask politely over and over again and give him the same puppy eyes Sumo gives when his owner digs in one of Connor's cooked meat dishes.  
  
But it was clear to the android that he had to try harder than that to convince him this time around so with a small, drawn-out sigh, he shuffled closer to the side of the couch currently occupied by Hank to slide onto his lap. With an exasperated sigh of his own, the other man sat up properly so he could easily accommodate his partner. After planting himself down over Hank's thighs, Connor snaked his arms around Hank's neck, leaning forwards to knock their foreheads together.  
  
"Pretty please? For me? It would be my first time doing something like this?" he said in an even stronger pleading manner. The android was doing the thing where he takes his bottom lip between his teeth while staring at him with his big, warm eyes and Hank knew that at this rate, he wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer and in a few minutes time, he was letting out a defeated groan as he said a sharp "Fine."  
  
It was all worth it just to see Connor's beautiful face break out in a wide smile before leaning forwards and repeatedly giving him small pecks on the lips, murmuring a string of thank yous in between each kiss against his mouth. Hank rolled his eyes but chuckled nonetheless before the android pulled away.  
  
"So, where do you keep them?" he said brightly, now bouncing on Hank's lap with newfound excitement.  
  
"Keep what?" said Hank, raising up an eyebrow.  
  
"The decorations of course! And the tree!" hummed Connor as he gingerly straddled his partner.  
  
Oh shit.  
  
"Well, I haven't exactly put those up in years so I kinda got... rid of them?" said Hank slowly, cautiously watching Connor's expression. As soon as he uttered the last syllable, the android's LED blinked red for a moment, his smile faltering as he replied with a small, crest-fallen "oh".  
  
Shit again.  
  
"Hey Con, it's fine though," said Hank quickly and before he could stop himself to think about it, he continued, "We can go out shopping and buy more okay?"  
  
The android's face lit up brighter than any Christmas tree they could possibly find, smiling happily once again whilst Hank contemplated the weight of his decision on his wallet. However, he'd have more than enough time to reflect on that the next day, during their drive to the department store. For the time being, he settled on sharing soft, languid kisses with his partner before he had to get up to go make Hank dinner.

* * *

"Well, that's just great," groaned Hank, slamming the hood of his car shut before making his way back into the car. Connor followed promptly, sitting on the passenger side of the vehicle as the other man scrambled through his phone to ring up a tow-truck service.  
  
Their afternoon before that had been pleasant. The two policemen were allowed to clock out early from work so Hank could drive them to the nearest department store carrying holiday-themed items. They found a couple, all scattered around a mall about half an hour's trip from the precinct and so they went there. On the way to the mall, Connor had preconstructed the best routes they could take to "maximise the number of shops to visit while keeping in mind bathroom and food breaks with the minimal amount of walking around possible," and true to his words, two hours later they were walking out with several bags of festive decor including lights, tree ornaments and temporary window paints. Connor also picked out a nice synthetic tree which would be delivered to them the following day due to its large size (Hank would worry about storage later) as well as a thick fleece blanket with little Santa hat wearing gingerbread men printed all over it and a knitted red and white stripped pet scarf for the St. Bernard back at home. At some point, the android had approached Hank with bunches of tinsel and glitter-coated stars, however, the older man had to put his foot down there as there was nothing worse to clean up after holidays were over than specks of tinsel in every nook and cranny inside the house. And don't even get him started on the glitter- that shit would hang around for life. There was no getting rid of the microscopic shiny pieces of plastic once they infiltrate your abode. To compensate, he had told Connor that he could buy literally anything else so a few minutes later he emerged from the cluster of decorative trees with a balsam and clove candle in one hand and a bobblehead Santa in the other (which he later attached to the dashboard in Hank's car).  
  
At one point, while they sat down for Hank to eat a hot dog, Connor spotted a typical mall Santa taking photos with eager kids and the android, with an equal level of enthusiasm, literally dragged the six foot two Lieutenant so they could take a photo as well. Hank didn't even have time to even think about talking his partner out of it as before he knew it, Connor was perched on top of the bemused Santa's lap with a hand signalling him to get closer which he reluctantly did. After the photo was taken, the man in the costume passed a remark to Hank.  
  
"With a stature and beard like that, you could easily take my place," he jokingly said as he tugged on the fake facial hair hanging from his face from a band of elastic. Hank reacted with a scoff and a shake of the head while a small smirk formed on Connor's face, LED whirring yellow. He shot him a 'don't even think about it look' before going off to pay and collect the photo from a small desk nearby. Connor hastily joined him a short while later- after whispering something into the mall Santa's ear which made the latter go red-faced.  
  
And now here they were, stuck on the side of an empty road two miles away from home with a setting sun behind them, wind blowing with the possibility of snowfall.  
  
After Hank hung up from an irritating phone call with his insured towing company, he reached out for the coffee cup in one of the holders, only to find it empty to his disappointment. Sinking further down into his seat, he let out a groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose before wrapping his arms around himself to keep warm.  
  
Of course, Connor noticed this and without missing a beat he said, "Your body temperature is in danger of falling below the recommended threshold. I suggest that you find a manner of keeping warm to maintain an optimal level of heat."  
  
"Thanks for stating that, Captain Obvious," huffed Hank, rolling his eyes as he turned to face the android to continue in a more sarcastic tone, "Does your sophisticated preconstruction software have any advice on how to do that?"  
  
The android's LED flickered to yellow for a moment as he ran said analysis.  
  
"Actually I do. Please join me in the back," was all that Connor said before opening the car door on his side and stepping out, shutting it closed behind him before opening one of the doors leading to the backseats.  
  
Hank wanted to complain about having to step out in the cold again but as the android adamantly shoved bags of Christmas decor in the front seat where he previously had been sitting, he knew it would fall on deaf ears. So with the little resolution he had left, he forced himself out of the driver seat to join his partner behind him. While Hank settled in, Connor pulled out the printed fleece blanket out of one of the larger cloth shopping bags and proceeded to unfold it as he beckoned his partner to get closer to him.  
  
As Hank pressed his side against Connor's while the android draped the fleece blanket over them, he noticed that his partner's chassis felt warmer than usual.  
  
"I can adjust my body temperature as I please," said Connor, as if reading Hank's mind.  
  
"So you're like a walking heater huh? Why didn't you tell me before?" said Hank, a hint of amusement in his voice as he slung an arm around the other's shoulders. Redness rose to Connor's face at the small action as he snuggled up to Hank before responding.  
  
"Well, it's not a feature I can keep on all the time in risk of over-heating. Same goes with turning up the cooling protocols. But it's fine to use once in a while especially in conditions with appropriate external temperatures such as this one."  
  
"I see," hummed Hank, resting his head on top of Connor's. They sat like there for a while, silent as the first specks of snow started to fall outside the vehicle. Hank hoped that the towing company would be there soon. The last thing he wanted was to get snowed in his old, beat-up car. At least he'd be with Connor if that happened.  
  
The android tilted his head up and pressed his lips against Hank's, resting a hand on his chest as the other male kissed him back. Hank brought a hand against his cheek, caressing Connor's projected skin as he gave him a gentle push forwards. Catching his intent, the brunet adjusted his position so he lied down on his back, momentarily breaking their kiss as he did so. Hank crawled over him, bracketing him between his arms in the small, confined space of the vehicle, the blanket draped down on either side of him as he leaned down to catch his partner's mouth once more.  
  
"So gorgeous," Hank muttered, pulling away from Connor to take a moment to look over him as he brushed his thumb over the android's full, bottom lip. The latter slid his tongue out, slipping the wet muscle around the digit prodding his lips in a tantalizing manner. Just that alone made the Lieutenant's cock stir in his trousers and his breathing turn heavy, but before he could make a move to pursue his desire to ravage his partner, a sharp knock could be heard coming from outside.   
  
Pushing the blanket down, Hank looked over his shoulder to notice through the now very fogged up window, a man was trying to peer inside the car. For a second he thought it might have been a policeman but then it dawned to him that he himself was _also_ a policeman and that it actually wasn't someone from the DPD entirely but the guy from the towing company. Hank had almost forgotten about their current situation and despite his delight in realising that they could finally go home, he also felt irritated at having his moment with Connor interrupted.  
  
The android's fingers found their way to Hank's neck, trailing over his beard and cupping his face and as the Lieutenant looked back down at him one last time, he saw the promise in the glint of his eyes of a continuation of their moment back in the comfort (and warmth) of their bedroom.


	2. mistletoe

Hank peered from behind the doorway of his bedroom. Connor didn't look as if he was anywhere in proximity of their room meaning that the older man could silently sneak out without getting mauled by the android. And he did just that now that he had the perfect chance and with the coast completely clear, he made a run for it in the direction of the bathroom, locking himself inside as soon as he stepped into the small room.  
  
After washing his face and freshening up, slipping on a clean, faded shirt and sweatpants underneath his indoor robe, he pressed his ear against the door, eavesdropping for any noise coming from the outside. When all signs pointed to stillness, he ever so quietly opened the door as he padded downstairs, a pair of socks over his feet to conceal any thud of his footsteps on the floor.  
  
All he had to do was get to the only safe spot in the house- the living room couch. At least it was safe for the time being unless Connor managed to compromise it too.  
  
The comforting view of his raggedy sofa, now covered in one of many red and green plaid printed throw-overs that made their way into his house, was in Hank's line of sight.  
  
Just five large steps and he could plummet onto it and not move away from it until he had to crawl back to bed again.  
  
He lifts his foot to take his first step only to feel a pair of arms come up from behind him, making him freeze into place as they settled around his waist. Connor pressed his chest against his back, resting his chin on his shoulder and Hank didn't even need to look at him to know he had a smug grin on his face.  
  
"Hey, Hank," whispered Connor in a sing-song manner, "Look what's above you."  
  
Hank did just so, already aware of the bunch of leaves tied up in a red ribbon hanging overhead but went along with it anyway to humour Connor anyway. As he did so, the android walked around him, hands trailing down to the older man's hips, standing up on tip-toes to lean into Hank as he nudged their noses together. With a sigh, the Lieutenant gave in to his exuberant partner and gave him a quick peg on the lips before stepping away to go sit on the couch. In his trail, he left a pouting, whining android and he would come to regret it in a second when said android clambered over him on the sofa.  
  
Of course from all the nuances and traditions that Connor immediately had to pick up on was the 'kiss-under-the-mistletoe' trope.  
  
It had been cute at first when Connor initially hung one up in the entrance of the house so they would exchange soft, tender kisses on their way out to work or on their way inside. In one instance, Hank had taken Sumo out for a walk and upon arriving back home, he found Connor waiting for him by the door in a cooking apron, spatula still in hand and a mischievous smile on his face. The android ended up pinned against one side of the hallway, back against the wall with his legs like a vice around Hank's waist, the latter hosting him up with both hands digging into the curve of his ass, both entranced in a heated make-out session. It was only when the agitated barking of the St. Bernard resounded through the house, promptly followed by the scent of burning food did they break away, the android rushing ahead of his partner to make haste of the now charred chicken he had been grilling. Hank ended up just ordering take out that night and for once, Connor didn't complain about it.  
  
In the days following that incident, more springs of mistletoe started to pop around the house; above their bed, hanging from the overhead cabinets in the kitchen, in every entryway- hell one even made its way on top of the shower head to accumulate with the ever increasing number of leafed branches and ribbons in the bathroom, the majority of which where stuck to the ceiling light fixture and the mirror. Hank had thought it was clever for the android to include one in there after using it as an excuse to bend him over the sink after getting riled up from kissing.  
  
However, by the third day of this, Hank had grown exhausted. There was only so much making out and fucking he could take in such a short period of time and despite all they've done, Connor remained insatiable.  
  
And that's how Hank ended up moving around like a burglar in his own home only, more often than not, he still ends up bested by his android and this time it was no exception.  
  
Connor had him lying on his back, propped up on his elbows to watch him as the android made quick work of undoing his loosely tied sweatpants and pulling them down along with his underwear. Part of Hank wanted to object, to tell his partner that it was eleven in the morning on a Friday off and that they'd have plenty of time to mess around later. However, to his dismay, his body betrayed him as his cock sprung to life as soon as Connor wrapped his fingers around the length. With an audible groan, Hank let his head rest back, staring at the ceiling as he felt the android's lips part around the tip as he took his member in his willing mouth. His lack of gag reflex allowed him to push him inside until his dick hit the back of his throat, swallowing around it before running his tongue along the underside of it. As Connor started to enthusiastically go down on him, Hank tried not to think much of the way his partner's cheeks flushed red as his head bobbed up and down over his shaft, artificial saliva trickling down the corners of his mouth while hollowing out his cheeks and licking him all over- lest he wanted to blow his load already.  
  
But as always, the Lieutenant had no self-control and he found himself sitting up to not just look at Connor as he took the entirety of his cock in the wetness of his mouth, nose buried in the patch of hair at the base of it but to also card his fingers through his hair and whisper nothing short of praises to him. This caused the android to moan around him, the vibrations of the vocal action sending vibrations to his dick causing him to thrust once, twice, four and five times into his mouth before, without prior warning, coming inside of his oral orifice.  
  
A few moments later, Hank's softening member was tucked back into his underwear, sweatpants pulled up again as he leaned back against the back of the sofa, already feeling worn out before his day even started with Connor resting against his side, a complacent expression over his features. With an exasperated sigh, Hank slung an arm around his partner's waist, pulling him closer as he carefully thought out his next words.  
  
"Don't you um, think we're overdoing that just a little bit?" he said.  
  
"What do you mean?" said Connor, looking up at Hank as his LED went from its calm blue to yellow.  
  
"Ya know, this whole-" Hank moved his free hand to gesture at the hanging several bunches of hanging leaves and ribbons, "-kissing under the mistletoe thing? A bit more than that in your case. Don't get me wrong Con, it's cute and all- hell, everything you do is downright adorable- but it kinda... loses its charm if you do it all the time."  
  
A soft "oh" sounded from Connor's mouth as he looked down, the light at his temple blinking red. Fuck.  
  
Hank opened his mouth, ready to take back his words but the android spoke up before he could do so.  
  
"I get it... I might have been a bit, over-zealous in this," said Connor slowly as he started to unwrap himself from around the other man, "I'll give you some space."  
  
Before the android could stand up and walk off, Hank grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him down again, moving him over his lap.  
  
"I didn't mean it like that," he murmured, sighing in frustration. For being the fruit of such an advancement in technology, Connor could be quite dense at times. "I don't want you to stop, just, tone it down a little." As he spoke, Hands took the android's hands in his and brushed his thumbs across them in circular movements in a soothing manner. "Especially when we have days off like this. There are dishes piling up in the kitchen and an overflowing basket of dirty laundry we need to take care of." The fact that the pair actually had tried to do house chores remained unspoken however, they were both very aware that whenever they did attempt, Connor ended up sitting either on the countertops or the washing machine, legs spread with Hank going at him between them.  
  
Okay maybe Hank _also_ was at fault as much as his partner but at least he addressed the issue.  
  
They talked over it for a couple more minutes, the android's smile surfacing back on his face as his LED returned to its normal colour. The couple agreed on minimising the number of mistletoe hanging around the house- and also what pasta dish Connor would make Hank for lunch as he hovered behind him and gazed at him, wondering how he got so lucky.  


* * *

The next morning, Hank woke up alone in his bed. Connor had already gotten out of stasis earlier to go down and make breakfast for his partner as well as do his routine replenishment of thirium.   
  
The two had to stop going in person to the vendor to stock up on the pouches of the blue-coloured solution, mainly because of the off-hand remark the cashier had made about how often Connor came to purchase thirium whilst giving him a knowing look. So now, once every two weeks, the android ordered it in bulk, restoring the depleted levels in his system every couple of days due to the sheer amount he uses up either because of work injuries or more commonly, because of his copious nighttime activities with his partner (which for the past couple of days had also extended into the daytime).  
  
Hank's just glad that CyberLife had thought it through and made sure that they had one essential fluid run through their androids which could be used for all the needed processes- be it the actual running of their systems, the analytic fluid inside their mouth and lubrication. The Lieutenant couldn't really picture himself putting out orders to buy his partner artificial semen.  
  
Still half-asleep, he rolled out of bed and got ready for work before following the smell of fried bacon into the kitchen. His chest swelled with pride when he saw the garbage bin overflowing with empty thirium pouches, lips curling up in a small smirk.  
  
He did _that_.  
  
Settling down at the table to tuck into his breakfast, he noticed the absence of a couple of particular festive 'decoration'. Not just a couple in fact; every single strand of mistletoe was gone from the kitchen. He said nothing about it, however, as he enjoyed his eggs and bacon in a new found peace.  
  
It was later, when he was grabbing his car keys to head out of the house for work with Connor by his side, that his eyes fell on the new location of the dreaded leaves and ribbons.  
  
"You said they were distracting yesterday so I figured I could just gather them all in one spot to comprise," pointed out the android as his partner looked at the three dozen bunches of mistletoe framing the door. Hank shook his head, a low chuckle reverberating through him.   
  
Of course, Connor would do something like this.  
  
Leaning down, he placed a kiss on his forehead- only for the cheeky android to tilt his head up and have him land on lips instead. Resting his hands on the small of Connor's back, Hank gave his partner a series of chaste kisses before pulling away- only for Connor to lean into him again.  
  
"That was five," hummed Connor before tilting his head in the direction of the door, "and there are around thirty-six bunches over there. You owe me at _least_ another thirty."  
  
The Lieutenant wasn't surprised later that day when both him and Connor got called into Fowler's office for showing up very, _very_ late for their shift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DM me on Twitter if you'd like to hear more about my theory on the refinement of thirium to be used as android cum and lube I could literally go on about it all day woops. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	3. sweaters

When Hank got home to Connor's absent presence underneath the archway of mistletoe by the door, he was certain that the android was up to something. His assumptions were confirmed the second he stepped inside the living room to find the floor covered in yarn balls, Sumo tangled in wool while playing with one of the said balls and Connor fervently going at what seemed to be a knitted article of clothing.

Of course, he would be making them matching sweaters in the most obnoxious shades of red, green and white. Hank spotted a few other colours of yarn in the pile- notably a numerous amount of black. As he walked inside the room, Connor didn't look up from what he was doing to Hank's surprise. It was only when he stepped out to go make himself a cup of coffee that he heard his name being called out behind him. Turning around, the android was putting the knitting tools down before standing up to walk over to his partner. Breaching the gap between them Connor briefly pressed their lips together before speaking.

"Did work treat you well today?" he hummed, slinging his arms around Hank's neck. The other replied with a nod before Connor spoke again. "I finished my scheduled maintenance a little earlier than expected this time around so I had some free time and coincidentally the supplies I ordered arrived today so..." The android's voice trailed off as he nudged his chin in the direction of what seemed to be a pile of sweaters strewn over the sofa.

Hank scoffed.

_Scheduled routine maintenance his ass._

It wasn't a coincidence. His partner knew that whatever he ordered would arrive on that day and he took it off on purpose.

To make _Christmas sweaters_.

Before Hank knew it, he was being pulled over towards the couch and for once since he and Connor had gotten together, it wasn't because his partner had been eagerly waiting all day to take his pants off. He sat down as the android rooted through the numerous pieces of knitwear before bringing out two finished sweaters. One of them was green with a picture of a St. Bernard knitted on it, a candy cane in his mouth and a small Santa hat perched on his head. The other sweater was a combination of red, white and accents in green, with a more traditional pattern involving rows of different festive symbols like reindeer and snowflakes but also the words 'Merry Christmas Ya' Filthy Animal' in big, bold, black letters across it. The Lieutenant didn't even need to guess which one was meant for him.

"Nines informed me of the DPD's yearly holiday sweater tradition and asked for me to help with his. I thought we could partake in it as well so I made a few options," he explained handing the sweater with the text to Hank.

"There's more?" said the other man, raising an eyebrow as he ran his hands over the soft woollen fabric. The material felt nice in across the skin of his palms, the slogan reminding him of the funny and ironic festive sweaters from when he was younger that he used to spend hours looking up online to find the perfect one to get absolutely wasted in at college parties and later on, at the DPD celebrations. However, the charm of it wore off after he got married. His wife had thought the whole thing was trivial, childish, so she made sure he just had formal and dull sweaters hanging in his closet to put him off the notion of the silly tops altogether, however, even after she had left him, he didn't pick up the habit again. And here was Connor, holding up another piece of clothing even more atrocious than the one in his hands.

The sweater was black, with mainly red and white accents and designs. In its middle, there was sewn on a huge candy cane- surrounded by the words 'It ain't gonna lick itself' in white lettering and Hank had to stifle back a laugh as he made a poor attempt at turning it down, that he wouldn't wear it. Of course, he gave up on that idea as Connor managed to tackle him down on the carpet and slip it on the faded shirt he was currently wearing.

"I got a bit carried away," said Connor, sitting with his legs tucked underneath him next to his partner, a sheepish expression on his face as he gestured at the remaining tops.

"Looks like it," muttered Hank, adjusting himself to sit cross-legged, "But I really appreciate you doing this Connor. It's been a while since I let a little loose in this sort of things. Say, what else have you got?"

* * *

"Your shirt's stupid."

Those were the first words that came out of Gavin Reed's mouth as soon as he laid eyes on Connor's bright green sweater the following day. The detective's own choice of festive wear was, as Hank described it, tacky. The sweater was an even brighter shade of green than the androids, with red etched designs and the phrase 'Kiss me Under the Mistletoe' printed in obnoxious lettering. To top it all off, he also had an actual mistletoe- right above his crotch. Connor was about to comment something on the small decoration but Hank gave him a stern look with narrowed eyes and that shut the android up before he even executed the speech protocol.

"He probably thinks he's clever," Hank had continued as he peered at him in the break room that morning while Gavin was fighting the coffee machine. Next to Connor was also Nines, the latter in the black sweater he requested the other android to make him- plain with the words 'Jolly As Fuck' embroidered on- both nodding in agreement to the Lieutenant's words.

And now here he was, blocking Connor's way as he tried to make his way over to his desk where Hank was waiting for him so they could continue with their work and the android could have sworn that the detective had exchanged the small ornament attached to the sweater for a bigger and more visible bough.

The android's sweater had a cute gingerbread man on it, sporting a smile and a wink with the words 'Bite Me' beneath him. When he had first shown it to Hank, the older man took it as an invitation and well... Connor ended up wrapping his knitting endeavours for the day for less woolly ones where the only fabric involved were the bedsheets on Hank's bed and the only things getting tangled were their limbs around each other.

"Why would he be smiling if he's getting _bitten_?"

The android wasn't sure if Gavin was testing him, or was really, _really_ dense- which is unusual for a detective and sometimes Connor wonders how he had even landed the job let alone his position with his attitude and disrespectful manner of speech. And also, how he even kept it.

As Gavin took a swing from his coffee cup, Hank appeared beside Connor. The detective's eyes immediately fell onto his choice of garment and a minute later, Connor was on his knees cleaning up the spilt coffee on the floor as Nines not so gently patted Gavin's back, the latter coughing.

Hank was leaning against his desk as he made sure the other hadn't sputtered any of the hot drink onto his candy cane sweater before looking up, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"At least I'm not trying to compensate for anything," remarked Hank, making Gavin's already red face go even redder as he scowled back at him. But the Lieutenant just ignored him, sipping at his own black coffee while resting his hand against the small of Connors back as he stood back up, before leading the android back to their desk, sneaking in a quick peck on his lips as they briskly walked away from the others.


	4. hot chocolate

"What the blazes is that smell Con?"

Another day, another case of shenanigans from the android.

Hank woke up on a Saturday morning with the fear that his house was on fire judging from the burning smell flooding his nostrils. However, as he got out of bed to fight the flames he assumed he'd face, not only did he see none but as he approached the kitchen, he realises that the cause of it all was his partner who was leaning over the stove trying to ease off the black cloud of smoke coming out of the pot in front of him.

Connor turned around to face Hank, his LED blinking between shades of yellow and red as he plastered a smile on his face.

"It's all under control, Hank, don't worry about it," he said, giving him a small thumbs up before returning to whatever concoction he was making.

Not convinced, Hank strode over towards him, towering over his back to peek at the contents of the pot. Meanwhile, Connor had turned the heat down and the smoke cloud was clearing off as he poked at what seemed to be a gelatinous mixture. Hank stood there puzzled for a moment until he spotted the empty thirium pouches littering the countertop.

"Just to make sure, you're not trying to feed me a pot of thirium based lubricant, right?" said Hank, furrowing his brows together as he recognised the texture of Connor's concoction.

The latter shook his head, a small chuckle escaping his lips as he spoke.

"No of course not. But I read up somewhere about the human custom of hot chocolate drinking and since I can't exactly consume human drinks, I tried to heat up some thirium to create a similar effect. However, it seems that I must've heated it up a bit too much because its chemical state changed a bit too much," the android explained sheepishly before his face lit up again, sliding away from Hank to make a bee-line to a mug he had put on the table at the center of the room earlier, its top covered with a saucer.

"Which reminds me..."

Connor picked it up and pressed it into Hank's hands.

"Try this and tell me what you think," he said as his partner took the mug and brought it to his lips. A warm, chocolate taste filled Hank's mouth, accented with the flavour of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger. It felt like he had bitten into the most delightful piece of gingerbread, only even more enhanced with the chocolate flavour.

"This is really good," said Hank, an exclamation in his voice as he resumed to take sips from the cup. A small longing expression clouded Connor's face for a moment, his LED briefly flickering red, before his grin resurfaced once more as he reached out for the pot to go clean out its contents.

This shift, however, didn't go unnoticed by Hank as he grabbed Connor by the wrist with his free hand, stopping him in his tracks.

"You know I can tell when something's bothering you," he said with a sigh as the android averted his gaze. The latter shrugged before saying, "It's nothing, I'm just being silly."

"Con, look at me," huffed Hank as he placed the mug down on the countertop behind him and used that hand to grab Connor's chin, turning his head around to face him in a more forceful manner. As he met the android's warm, brown eyes, he felt his partner's artificial skin heat up under his touch, a sheer layer of pink emerging on his face as he visibly relaxed, leaning into Hank just a little. The latter remained silent, anticipating the other's reply.

"I don't really have a sense of taste," started Connor, "and well um, I can only take little amounts of liquid and such- sample appropriate sizes to be dissolved and analysed. Anything much more than that my body stores in a little containment unit that I occasionally have to empty out. I do have however a direct pipeline I can activate to pour thirium through in case my other fill-ports are inaccessible or compromised."

The android added that line about emptying the container unit mainly for clarification. He knew what Hank was thinking about ingesting compounds in his mouth.

"How much is _occasionally_?" said Hank, eyes slightly narrowed.

"Enough," said Connor quickly before he resumed his speech, "Anyway, bottom line is, I can't enjoy edible things."

"Of course, who would if every time they took a piece of food, they see the number of calories and heart disease risk pop up in front of them?" joked Hank. Connor frowned, misinterpreting his statement.

"That's not what I meant. What I was refer-"

"I know what you meant, Connor," said Hank, stifling back a laugh before waving over the mess the android had made before he continued.

"What you say you clear this mess up and I'll take you somewhere?"

* * *

"How did you even find out about this place?" said Connor, his face beaming as he cradled the insulated paper cup in his hands.

"Chen told me about it. Something about taking a girl out on a date here so I thought I'd check it out," Hank replied, nursing his own cup of hot chocolate before taking a sip, "Although the human stuff doesn't beat yours."

The two were sitting on a bench by a small pop-up cart selling normal and thirium based drinks. It had just been his luck really, that it had opened that morning. Connor was happily taking small swings from his blue-tinged drink between looking around the snow-covered surroundings of the park and the cute drawings of holiday-themed penguins and polar bears on his cup.

Apparently, it wasn't just a case of heating the thirium. Certain pressurised equipment was needed to stop it from turning into a congealed substance. In fact, its consistency was even thinner than normal thirium.

The android leaned against Hank, rubbing his cheek against his shoulder, the rough texture of his jacket scraping against his artificial skin as he did so. They sat like that, in silence for a while before Connor spoke up.

"Hey, Hank?" he said in a quiet voice.

"Mmm?"

"I love you so much."


	5. fireplace

"I think that's the last of them,” muttered Connor to no one else but himself as he dropped the final armful of large cardboard boxes. Sumo was running around by his feet, barking excitedly at said boxes for some reason while the android tried to move around without tripping on any of the scattered cans and pots of paints and rolls of tape. Meanwhile, Hank sat not too far off from them, lounging on the sofa, watching the scene unfold in front of him as he took sips from his beer can.

Just another normal day at the Anderson household.

At long last, Connor plopped down cross legged on the floor as he took one of the boxes in his hands, turning it around as he examined it. It had a rectangular shape, long but not too narrow. Hank had no idea what the android was up to but he didn't stop him, mainly out of curiosity but also because someone finally found a use for the multitude of boxes cooped up in Hank's storage room. The brunet was prying open cans of paint now with one end of a pair of large and sharp looking scissors while trying to do so out of Sumo's reach as the State. Bernard attempted to try and lick everything in his line of sight. Eventually the dog calmed down a little but not before Connor gave him one of the smaller boxes to toss around between his large paws and chew at.

“What ya working on?” said Hank at long last, peering at his partner over the rim of the metal drink can in his hands.

“Mmm, a surprise,” said Connor, turning his head around briefly to shoot a smile at the older man before going back to wrestling the paints free. When he finally had all the required supplies ready, he picked up a disposable plate and started to pour paint into it, mixing it together with a large paint brush.

“Wait, Con, if you're going to use those make sure you lay out newspapers or something beneath you,” said Hank, sitting up straight as he furrowed his brows.

“Newspapers became obsolete ten years ago in favour of strictly electronic news pages,” said Connor and Hank rolled his eyes.

“You know what I mean Connor, I don't want paint stains over the carpet,” huffed Hank.

“Mmm I know,” said the android, smugness evident in his tone as he picked himself off the floor to go get some type of material to cover the carpet with. A few minutes later he came back with a bunch of rolled up plastic mats which the older male used to lay down when doing any type of construction work around the house. Hank couldn't remember the last time he pulled them out of storage- it almost felt like it was a lifetime ago that he did any type of of renovations around his abode.

Connor was back to sitting down after having carefully slipped everything onto the large plastic mats. Hank was thankful he reminded the android to cover his carpet as only just a few minutes later, Sumo rose up with a startle and knocked over one of the paint cans in Connor's proximity. The latter laughed as Hank told the dog off, the St. Bernard's eyes growing droopy with chagrin at being scolded. Connor as expected took pity on him and a pout formed on his lips, looking at his partner with the same sad eyes as Sumo for raising his voice at him. Sighing for the upteenth time that afternoon, Hank got up and padded over to the others , crouching down to rub at the back of Sumo's neck as he muttered a small sorry and soon enough, the dog was bouncing onto him, slobbering over the side of his face as he landed a hefty lick against his cheek. A feeling of wetness surfaced on the other side of his face and the man didn't even have to tilt his head towards that side to know it was Connor, peppering his cheek with small pecks.

“Thought I only owned one dog,” chuckled Hank and Connor grinned.

“Well, detective Reed does like to point out that I look like a lost puppy following you around,” said Connor as he sat back down, hands rising up to roam up and down Hank's arm.

“Maybe he calls you that because you won't stop putting things in your mouth,” grumbled Hank as he eyed Sumo who was chewing at a paintbrush handle.

“What type of things, Hank?” said Connor, a smirk tugging the corners of his mouth upwards as he leaned forwards to brush his lips against his partner's. “As far as I know, dogs don't suck-”

The android's sentence was left unfinished as Hank interjected by capturing his lips in a kiss, shutting him up. Connor's hands found purchase in the older man's sweater, pulling himself against him as Hank sank down properly on his knees.

“I can show you exactly what I can do with my mouth,” murmured Connor against Hank's lips, heat rising to his face.

“Not in front of Sumo,” said Hank, pointing towards the dog before gesturing to the rest of the items littering the floor, “Also, not before you finish your little arts and crafts project either.”

Connor plastered a pout on his visage once more but Hank didn't fall for it, standing up and looking away before going back to recline on the sofa.

He must've dozed off at some point because the moment his eyes fluttered open, Connor was nowhere to be seen in the living room and the smell of meat being cooked wafted from the kitchen. Hank stumbled up, the gingerbread man print blanket that had been placed over him by Connor slipping down on the carpet. He leaned down to pick it up and toss it back on the sofa before following the delightful smell, walking into the other room just in time to catch Connor plating his dinner onto the table.

“Did you nap well?” came Connor's voice as he finished setting down the cutlery. Hank replied with a nod, rubbing at his still sleepy eyes. A moment later, the android was by his side, snaking an arm around his as he led him outside the kitchen and away from the mouth watering dinner he had just laid out for him, much to Hank's dismay.

“I've got something to show you,” hummed Connor before the older man could complain and took him back to the living room, “I thought you'd see it as soon as you woke up but guess you didn't notice it. Too distracted by the food?”

“Yup,” said Hank and as if on cue, his stomach rumbled. Connor chuckled before stopping in his tracks, turning his head to face the wall behind the dingy television in front of the couch. Hank's gaze followed his and his eyes widened in surprise as he laid his eyes on the result of the craft work his partner had been doing earlier.

Somehow, the android had managed to make a fake fireplace from the old boxes and half dried up paints he scavenged from his storage room- complete with Christmas decorations and wreaths adorning the mantlepiece and a couple of fake candles lit up with small LED flames between the stone pattern painted columns where the actual fire would have been were it a real fireplace.

“I read that fireplaces are symbolic to holidays festivities with the whole Santa coming down your chimney thing although the whole concept of someone breaking into your house to leave presents is a little, creepy,” explained Connor, “I just wanted to make one just as part of the decorations tho, thought it'd be nice.”

Hank shook his head but chuckled, slinging an arm around Connor, pulling him close.

“You're such a nerd, you know that?” he said, leaning down to plant a small kiss on top of his soft, brown curls.

Connor smiled, a red tinge surfacing on his cheeks as the two silently gazed at the flickering of the orange lights beneath the mantelpiece, Sumo snoozing by the side of it, his snout noticeably covered with small traces of paint and Hank knew, that in that very moment, more than he had ever been before, that he was truly in love.

**Author's Note:**

> Come yell at me on Twitter @peachtipple if ya wanna (and perhaps check out my other stuff if you want more HankCons!) <3


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